


Whispers of Fate

by TonyStarkissist



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Din Djarin adopts Rey, Fluff, Gen, Good Parent Din Djarin, ManDadlorian, Protective Din Djarin, Protective Grogu | Baby Yoda, Protective Rey (Star Wars), Reluctant Dad Din Djarin, Soft Din Djarin, The Mandalorian Au, The Mandalorian adopts Rey, Young Rey (Star Wars)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-28
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-19 06:35:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,810
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29746467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TonyStarkissist/pseuds/TonyStarkissist
Summary: After hunting down a bounty on Jakku, Din encounters a tenacious young child.  She has no family and no proper home. By creed he was honor bound to take her in. No Mandalorian could leave an abandoned child behind. They were Foundlings… and he was once a Foundling.This is the way
Relationships: Baby Yoda & Din Djarin, Din Djarin & Grogu | Baby Yoda, Din Djarin & Paz Vizsla, Din Djarin & Rey, Grogu | Baby Yoda & Rey, Paz Vizsla & Rey
Comments: 55
Kudos: 132





	1. Jakku

**Author's Note:**

> This is a fic I’ve been toying around with for a while So here’s my first fic for the Mandalorian/Star Wars fandom! I’m excited to see how it goes. Also, this takes place only a short while before Din finds Grogu. He will definitely come into play in later chapters.

Jakku.

Din had to admit he was not all that impressed, and he didn’t exactly have high expectations to begin with either. Desert planets had never been his favorite. Primarily because of the heavy armor and thick padding of his under armor’s tendency of trapping sand in places it shouldn’t be possible. After his first time on Tatooine, he’d spent the better part of a day cleaning out the dry sand and repolishing his armor. It also wasn’t very exciting to chase runaway bounties across a deserted planet, hiding somewhere along the repeating patterns of large sand dunes and rural settlements. For most hunters it would be a hopeless endeavor, and that’s why the bounty had such a high price with the guild, but for him it shouldn’t take longer than a day… hopefully.

He ended up having to park the Razor Crest a long way from the only known outpost he could find on the map. The planet was ridden with scavengers, all of which probably desperate for scrap and could care less about potentially marooning a stranger on this maker-forsaken planet. Even this far out Din has doubts he’ll return to his ship in the same condition it’s in. As old and scrappy looking his ship may be, it still flew which meant it was still of value and would result in quite the payday for whatever scrapper may stumble upon it. It’s a better chance than landing at the trading post though, considering the most condensed population of scrappers would be around the very outpost they used to trade their scrap.

Good thing his next bounty was on Maldo Kreis. It would be a nice contrast to the blinding sun and the burn of dry oxygen.

He sighs as he takes one last glance outside the cockpit viewport before powering down the Razor Crest and beginning his trek across this barren planet. 

Civilization was scarce and unless this Rodian smuggler was willing to take his chances in the middle of the barren desert, there weren’t many places he could hide.

He follows the fob, wandering out in the direction of the Niima Outpost. So, if he becomes absolutely desperate, the scrappers and traders who supposedly wandered the surrounding desert each day might have spotted a misplaced Rodian during their wanderings and point him in the right direction.

After about an hour of walking, the fob had led him past several scrapped Imperial ships which seemed to be growing in abundance and concentration the closer he came to the settlement. He lifts his hand to adjust his visor view settings to see if he can track a fresh trail of footprints.

Nothing.

He keeps the setting on and continues walking.

He is led in the direction of an old AT-AT, half buried beneath the sand, and there he finds a set of fresh footprints circling the outside that had wandered from the opposite direction. It wasn’t exactly what he hoped to find. The footprints were far too small and humanoid to fit the Rodian he was looking for, but it is the first sign of life he’s found in these outskirts so far. His next best bet would be to continue towards the small civilization further South. So, he scans for heat signatures along the skeleton of the AT-AT and sure enough he finds _two_. One of which, he assumes, being the owner of the small footprints he just found.

He crouches slightly and pulls his blaster from its holster as he stealthily moves around the walker to keep from drawing attention to his arrival. He ducks into the open belly of the machine, blaster ready. His visor highlights the silhouette of the smaller figure crouched just around the corner, and the other further in, close to where the head must be located.

He senses the incoming attack before it lands and his free hand darts down just in time to catch the staff swinging towards the portion of his gut not protected by his cuirass. He tilts his helmet to the side with a smirk growing across his mouth beneath it as his eyes settle on a tiny little thing with a much too large starfighter helmet jostling around atop their cowl and goggle-covered head. They grunt in frustration, putting their entire body weight into trying to tug the staff out of his grip. He tugs back just enough to rip it from their hands and toss it behind him, out of the way.

“Hey!” And the single word is enough that he can identify the small person as a young child, perhaps female. But the outburst also drew the attention of his arrival to his target. He heard a panicked rustle from the next room over and his head snaps to the side, growling in frustration at the inconvenience.

There goes the element of surprise.

“Get out of here you bug sucker!” A tiny fist collides with the padding over his abdomen and he glances down at his tiny assaulter. He gives a simple shove to their helmet to move the kid out of his way and starts further into the walker to follow the panicked scuffling. He points his fob towards the direction of the noise, and he smiles as he picks up his pace in time with the hurried beeping tone.

This wouldn’t take very long at all.

“Hey! Get back here!” He ignores the kid and leans around the corner to keep his blaster pointed in preparation. He comes around just in time to find the Rodian halfway through a cut out at the side of the head of the walker.

Soon Din’s chasing him across the large sand dunes. It didn’t take much effort, just a few long strides and an easy aim of his fibrecord from his wrist to trip him.

As he finishes securing the cuffs he hears a high-pitched screech just as a hard weight collides into his side. It makes him stumble slightly, and he pulls out his blaster, spinning it towards his attacker as he regains his footing.

“Stand down!” He growls at the young child. They were still wearing that oversized helmet and they’d reclaimed their weapon.

“No!” They yell at him, pointing the end of their staff at him threateningly. “Leave him alone!”

Din tilts his helmet to the side curiously, but he doesn’t lower his blaster.

“Is he your father?” He highly doubts it, but it didn’t hurt to ask. Mandalorian’s weren’t the only ones to collect Foundlings… Although for all he knows this kid could have green scaly skin underneath that helmet and oversized tunic.

“No,” she scowls, “I met him yesterday.”

He lowers his blaster and sighs. He reaches down and pulls his captured bounty to his feet, giving him a good push in the direction of his ship in a complete dismissal of the child. They’ll give up soon enough. From his experience, children’s attention spans were extremely thin.

“Doe girl sa insistent.” The bounty mutters to him in Huttese.

_Girl_ … Din notes.

“I can see that.” Din mutters in response. It didn’t take a genius to realize the girl was stubborn and plucky. He knew that when the child tried attacking _him_ , a Mandalorian, with a stick.

“Hagwa hurt cheekta.” the Rodian begged for her, eyeing the twitch of Din’s fingers hovering over his blaster.

Din tilts his head then turns to glance at the girl. “I don’t hurt children,” he replies gruffly, then nods towards the girl to address her. “Go on home kid.”

The girl doesn’t budge an inch, and she doesn’t lower her staff either.

“Ya sa noah wompa tah care che cheekta.”

Din found it amusing that this bantha had the gall to try and guilt him into being released. He wasn’t going to buy into it, and he gave him another push to spur him into a brisk pace forward.

She follows them, because of course she does. She stews for a good while on their journey, but in typical child-like fashion, her curiosity wins over her stoniness and soon she’s peppering him with questions which he promptly ignores, hoping she’d lose interest and go on her merry way.

“Doe girl will nopa leave,” The Rodian muttered, “Mee know.”

“I can understand you y’know Rodey,” the girl quips as she flips the visor of her helmet up and pulls down her goggles to glare at the reptilian humanoid, “I’m not stupid.”

“Karking girl.”

Din shoves him and finally turns around to face the girl with a heavy sigh. “What will it take for you to go home?”

She nods her head at his prisoner. “For him to keep up his promise.”

“And what promise might that be?”

“He say that he’d take me to see his ship and even lemme fly it if I gave him my portions! And now I got no food or water, and I haven’t gotten to seen his ship.”

_Maker help him._

He turns his back to her again and continues to walk. He notices that this time the girl’s footsteps don’t immediately pick up behind him like before, and he buckles.

“Come. You can see my ship.” He reluctantly mutters and Din hears her excited gasp and tiny footsteps chasing after him until the girl is trotting passively at his side, the top of her head reaching just below his elbow. She looks up at him from beneath the orange tinted visor of her helmet as if sensing his gaze. She pulls down the cowl covering her face to show off her bright smile, all teeth except the one tooth missing in the front and Din allows the slightest smile to break out in return only because he knew she wouldn’t be able to see it.

***

“WOAH!”

The girl leaps into a quick sprint once they reach the top of the sand dune. The Razor Crest now visible in the distance.

By the time he and the Rodian caught up, the girl had circled the ship at least twice. Her helmet had been discarded near the hangar door which now reveals the messy braid of brown hair falling over her shoulder.

Din lifts his arm to tap a button on his wrist gauntlet and the boarding ramp slowly hisses and begins to lower. Before the ramp even hit the sand, the kid is back beside him, jumping on the balls of her feet in anticipation, her helmet tucked securely beneath her left arm.

“Don’t touch anything,” Din instructs in a gruff tone. She nods obediently and sticks to his side as he guides his bounty up into the hull.

That’s when the Rodian started to get a bit finnicky and he pulled away from Din’s grip, trying to retreat from the ship like he just realized what was happening.

” Mee have credits. Mee can wamma twice myo bounty.”

Din pulls him further into the ship, ignoring his pleads. He gives him one last push backwards and with a final hiss he’s sealed in carbonite.

Job well done.

“Hey! What’d you do to him!” The girl rushes forward, hand slapping against the solid carbonite outline of the reptilian’s leg. 

“He’s fine. It’s just to keep him quiet while I fly.”

“Ohh,” she muses, taking a step back and tilting her head to glance at the two other carbonite slabs in front of him. She points at them. “Were they noisy too?”

Din shrugs and sits down on a crate near the open ramp to adjust his vambrace. “You could say that.”

That seemed to be good enough of an answer for her and she approached him with the same wide grin from earlier, fists balled up at her side in excitement. “I didn’t like him anyways! I just wanted to see his ship! Can I fly your ship now?”

“No.”

“What?!” She whined. “but you said I could!”

“No. I said you could see it.” He stands up and points to the crate he was just sitting on. “Sit. I’ll make you food.”

She obeys, but only with an indignant huff and a pout. She turned her glare onto the floor and crossed her arms over her chest. It’s silent for a good while as Din heats up some broth for her and he’s surprised to find that he likes it much better when the girl Is chattering rather than silently brooding.

“You got a name?” He asks after awkwardly clearing his throat.

“Rey,” she answers with a huff.

He turns with the small bowl of soup in his hands and offers it to her.

“How old are you?”

“Seven, I think,” she responds as she makes grabby hands for the bowl before promptly slurping it up in just a couple of gulps then handing the bowl back to him. “Thank you, sir.”

“You’re welcome kid.” Din hands her a cup of water as he takes the bowl from her and she does the exact same as she did the broth.

“I can fly you back home. Where do you live?”

“I live in that walker!” Rey exclaims, her excitement growing at the prospect of being able to fly even if she wasn’t at the wheel.

Din pauses and looks at her. “That’s where you _live_?”

“Yeah!”

He grits his teeth, turning to face her fully. Maybe that Rodian wasn’t lying to pull a fast one on him after all. “Where are your parents? Who looks out for you?”

Rey’s face puckers in thought. “Well, my parents aren’t here right now. They’ll be back though… but um… Unkar kinda looks out for me for now. He gives me rations for good scrap.”

“Where are your parent’s Rey?” Din hopes he doesn’t receive the answer he knows he will. Maker knows he cannot afford to care for a Foundling right now…

Rey shrugs like it’s no big deal. “I don’t know. They didn’t tell me.”

“How long have they been gone?”

“638 Days,” she responds quickly.

Din grunts, grumbling under his breath because _of course_. Her parents weren’t coming back anytime soon that was a given, they probably sold her off to that Unkar fellow as a slave to earn a quick buck. It wasn’t an uncommon occurrence; in fact, it was a familiar story for many Foundlings he’s come across through the years. But to leave a child as young as this one was cruel and disgusting, especially to leave them on a planet the likes of Jakku! Most would never be able to survive, and he wonders how it was possible this girl was able to for as long as she had. He slaps his hand against the control panel on the wall beside the ramp and it slowly raises into place. He moves towards the ladder leading up to the cockpit without another word to her.

“Wait! Mister where are you going?” Rey jumps up to follow him, looking up at him from the bottom of the trail of rungs.

Again, Din ignores her and continues his way into the cockpit. He takes a seat in the pilot’s chair, grinding his teeth together in frustration. He supposed he could just drop her off with the clan when he made it back to Nevarro. It had been a while since any new Foundlings had been introduced considering he was the only one to really leave the covert as of late. She’d be well taken care of, he’s sure. Celebrated even.

He begins flipping through the switches on the control board to start up the engines.

“Sir, are you flying me back to the walker?” Rey asks. For the first time that day she sounded unsure and a bit nervous, but Din is far too wound up by the frustrations of his new predicament to care.

“No. You’re coming with me. Now strap in.”

“What?! No! I can’t leave! What if my parents come back for me and I’m not here?! I have to wait for them!”

Din pauses for only a moment to sigh before continuing about his ritual of prepping the ship for takeoff. “They aren’t coming back for you kid.”

“Huh?”

He turns around when he hears the brokenness in her voice, and he frowns. She clutches her helmet to her chest, chin tucked down to rest against it as tears formed in her eyes. He takes the moment to note that maybe the way he broke the news was a bit too harsh. So, instead of risking saying something else that would trouble her he points to the co-pilot’s seat behind his.

She shakes her head. “What do you mean they’re not coming back? Do you think they died?”

Din didn’t know what to say. He wasn’t well versed when it came to emotions, especially the emotions of children. They were sensitive creatures and were quite unpredictable in his experience. So, instead, he completely veers around the question.

“I will take you back to my clan and you will be well taken care of. I will even look for your people if they are to be found, but I am _not_ leaving you here.” His tone and words weren’t up for dispute and she seemed to understand as much.

She stares at him through glassy eyes but doesn’t utter a word.

Din sighs in resignation, “I’ll let you help pilot the ship.”

Anything to keep her from crying.

Rey’s eyes light up then and her head lifts slightly from where she had hidden it behind her helmet. “Is-is it sandy?” She pauses and when Din tilts his helmet to the side in question, she continues hesitantly, “where-where you would take me… is it sandy there?”

“Not particularly.”

“Okay,” Rey nods slowly, inching towards the seat Din had gestured towards earlier.

***

Rey was a natural at flying. She was eager and a very quick learner. She told him about the training simulator she’d found just a couple weeks back as well as a training computer. So Din taught her a couple advanced things, and her utter fascination when they entered hyperspace was enough to distract her from her earlier woes and able to make him smile beneath his helmet. The streaks passing by through the windshield illuminating her wide, glassy eyes. After an hour or so, her sad demeanor about leaving home had diminished completely and was now fueled with excitement and curiosity at getting to traverse the galaxy for the first time.

So, here he sat, an hour after entering hyperspace, answering question after question with as few words as he could possibly manage.

“Why do you wear that helmet? And all that armor?”

“I’m a Mandalorian.”

“What’s a Mandalorian?”

“We’re Warriors.”

“Cool! I wanna be a Mandalorian!”

“Maybe one day.”

“Where are we going?”

“To Maldo Kreis.”

“Where’s that?”

“A ways away.”

“Are you gonna pick up another guy like Rodey?”

“Yes.”

“Is that your job? Are you a bounty hunter?”

“Yes.”

“Cool,” she was silent for all of two seconds. Which was just enough for Din to release a breath in hopes she had grown tired of asking questions…

_She had not._

“What’s your armor made of?”

“Beskar.”

“What’s your name?”

“Mando.”

“Is that really your name?”

Din sighs one final time. His helmet is propped against the head rest in defeat as he tilts it to the side.

“You ask a lot of questions,” he grunts.

The kid huffs and falls back against her seat. “Sorry,” she mutters.

Din stands from the pilot seat and gestures for her to stand up as well, holding out his hand to help her to her feet. “Come. I’ll show you how to use the fresher and then you can sleep until we reach our next destination.”

She’s tentative, but she takes his hand and doesn’t let go as she follows him down into the hull. He shows her how to work the fresher and the stream of water pouring form the wall has her squealing in delight, rushing forward to cup it in her hands and watch it spill over her fingers. He adjusts it to a temperature that would be comfortable for her. Then he does a silent onceover of her clothes and leaves to fetch her something to wear once she was clean. Her current outfit looked to be nothing more than a few rags held together by the wrappings around her wrists and feet and the tie around her waist. He places them on the sink.

“You can put this on after you’re clean. I’ll buy you better garments when we are in Nevarro, but for now this should do.”

Rey nods her head enthusiastically, eager to step into the fresher. Din steps out, the door sliding shut behind him so she could have privacy, and he moves further into the hull to begin preparing his own dinner. He made a point to begin heating up another portion of broth for the little one as well. She could probably do for some added nutrition with how small she appeared for her age.

He didn’t risk taking off his helmet to eat. Instead, he lifted the edge to take occasional sips and by the time he was done and discarding his empty bowl, Rey was stepping out of the fresher with sopping wet hair still done up in her messy braid and a wide grin on her face.

“That was so fun!” She exclaimed. “I’ve never done that before.”

She wore the large upper half of his old flight suit sinched to fit around her waist using the ribbon and the trousers she’d arrived in. The thick material barely fit over her small frame, the collar just barely managing to hang on her shoulders. Mando doesn’t say anything in response and simply holds out the fresh bowl of broth he’d just heated up.

Rey stared at the offered portion with wide eyes. “More?” She asked as if she couldn’t quite believe he was really offering it to her.

“Yes. You need to eat.” Din states with his arm still outstretched towards her.

“But I already ate.”

“I want you to eat more.”

Rey gave him a stink eye, lips pursing in suspicion. “You aren’t trying to plump me up to eat me or somethin’ are you?”

As amusing as the accusation was, Mando’s tone remained unamused. “No. Now drink.”

She takes it from him and greedily gulps it down like she was afraid he’d change his mind and Din begins to feel guilt remembering his original intention of leaving her behind to starve on that scorched planet. He’s glad he found her, she’d make a strong Mandalorian one day and she’d do the tribe proud. They would take good care of her.

He stands to begin making up a bed for her on the floor. He gathers as many blankets and cloths he could find, knowing Kreis would be far colder than what she was used to.

She’s at his side in a matter of moments, looking down at the warm cocoon of blankets he’d built on the floor.

“Time to sleep little one,” he tells her, balanced on one knee as he pulls back several layers of blankets for her and gesturing for her to climb beneath. She scrambles over to hurry and snuggle herself beneath the mound of soft blankets and Din gently settles the cloths back over her shoulders. She yawns, hand snapping up to cover her mouth as her eyes squeezed shut for a moment before they opened once more to blink up at him with a tired smile.

“Thank you Mr. Mando.”

“You’re welcome, kid.” He shuffles awkwardly, adjusting the blankets again before standing upright. “Do you need anything?”

She looks up at him anxiously, chewing on her bottom lip. “Ummm not really… but um… can I ask you one last question? I swear I won’t ask no more!”

Din sighs and nods his head.

“Why wouldn’t you leave me on Jakku?”

He pauses as he searches for the right words to explain it to her as he taps a button on his vambrance to dim the lights of the hull. She had no family and no proper home. By creed he was honor bound to take her. No Mandalorian could leave an abandoned child behind. They were Foundlings… and he was once a Foundling.

“This is the way.”

_That was the way._


	2. The Tribe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was NOT expecting the response I got from last chapter! Thank you so so so much for all your support! I really do appreciate everyone taking the time to comment and read what I had to share. I hope you enjoy this chapter X)

Rey wakes up the next day feeling the most rested she’d ever been in her whole entire life. She blinks slowly and uses her hand to cover a wide yawn while she peeks her head out from beneath the mound of toasty blankets she’d burrowed under during the night. The yawn breaks into a sleepy smile and she hugs her waist at the pleasant feeling of a full tummy and warm feet. She wasn’t cold, or thirsty, and that hadn’t happened in a very long time. She rubs a blanket against her cheek humming at the soft feeling of the warm fabric against her newly cleaned skin. She’d never had blankets beyond thick sack cloth before which was just scratchy and itchy, so it wasn’t very fun to sleep with. Nothing like the blankets Mando had given her.

A soft clank of metal interrupts her quiet thoughts, and she turns her head slightly to find the very Mandalorian she was thinking of. He was sitting on a crate with a long rifle laying across his lap and a dirty rag in his gloved hand. She watches him for a little while, blinking lethargically as he continued polishing, or cleaning, or whatever it was he was doing to his rifle. She had no desire to leave her warm little nest to investigate as she usually would, the blankets were just so warm! The warmest and softest she’d ever felt. And the calming motions of Mando’s hand grazing over the weapon nearly lulled her right back to sleep.

“--Did you sleep well?”

The sudden deep voice startled her, and Rey’s eyes widened as she pulled the blanket up to her chin in a shy manner. The Mandalorian hadn’t even looked in her direction when he spoke. How did figure out she was awake?

After a few moments and she still hadn’t spoken, his helmet did tilt her way. He paused what he was doing, and she could hear a heavy sigh filter through his voice vocoder. She noticed that he did that quite a bit.

“Is everything alright?” He asks her. That time his tone bordered more towards genuine concern rather than the bored pleasantry from before.

Rey sits up slowly, still clutching the wool blanket close to her face. Her eyes dart away from his visor timidly as she answers. “I’m fine Mr. Mando sir.” She noticed that the loud hum of the engine had been replaced by the muted cranks of a generator. “Did we land on that planet yet?”

Mando turns his head back to the rifle and rag in his lap. “Yes. We landed about an hour ago.”

Rey perks up a little bit and Mando leans forward to close the cabinet she hadn’t noticed was open. She barely caught a glimpse of the large variety of blasters before the doors clicked shut.

“I was waiting until you woke before I left, so you wouldn’t be startled that I was gone… I want you to eat some food. I don’t know how long I’ll be gone.”

Rey’s face falls. “You’re leaving?”

Mando’s whole body turns to face her and she could feel her chin involuntarily quiver. She liked him. She didn’t know why, but she liked him a lot and she didn’t want him to go just yet. He was so nice. He gave her food and water and nice blankets. He promised to buy her new clothes and bring her to a new home. That’s more than anything else anyone has ever done for her. In fact, she can’t even remember the last time someone did something just for her so she could be happy and comfortable. Mando was the first ever that she could remember… she couldn’t even remember her parents that well. They were nothing more than a muted memory lingering in the back of her mind… and-and if he left now like her parents did what if he never came back for her like they did? She ducks her head, falling into the pile of blankets and pulling the one clutched in her fists over her head to hide her tears from him. She didn’t want him to see her cry. He told her Mandalorian’s were warriors and she didn’t know what he would end up thinking of her if he saw her cry over something so silly.

Heavy footsteps approach where she lay on the floor and then a rustle of fabric and soft clank of metal before she felt a large hand settle for just a moment over the blanket covering her head before it moved away. And then the cover was gently pulled from over her head and tucked gently to the side.

“Are you crying?” He asked, voice still a little gruff.

She shook her head adamantly and wiped her forearm beneath her nose as she sniffled. “No,” she scoffed, rolling to her side so her back was to him. She didn’t know why she was crying now, she _never_ cried anymore.

Mando was still knelt beside her and she could feel the hard leather of his gloves brush against the side of her cheek when he pushed a few loose strands of hair that’d escaped her braid behind her ear. “Come. You need to eat.”

Rey wanted to eat, of course she did, but if she moved then Mando would be able to see her tears and he would know she lied to him… And then he’d probably hate her and leave her for real instead of taking her to that nice home he promised he would! So, she shook her head again and grabbed for the blanket to pull it over her head once again.

“I’m not hungry.” She muttered.

He sighed _again_ and she heard him stand up and move away from her.

“I’ll be back before dark. Don’t touch anything—”

Rey ripped the blanket off her and sat up in a panic. He was leaving _now_?

“Don’t go!”

His helmet tilts to the side as he looks down at her.

She sniffles again and wipes her tears away, hoping that her eyes weren’t red and puffy just yet. “Can I go with you… please?”

“No.” He shakes his head and turns away from her as he straps his rifle to his back.

Rey leaps to her feet, wincing at the sudden cold metal of the hull against her bare feet. She runs towards him and grabs his hand, tugging him away from the loading ramp controls.

He doesn’t appear to be the least bit amused by her antics. “It’s too cold. You’ll freeze.”

Rey stomps her foot in consternation. She was _not_ getting left behind; she doesn’t care what he says.

“I don’t care!”

Her outright refusal to obey irked Mando. She could sense his harsh glare even though she couldn’t see it beneath his helmet and he takes a single step towards her before lifting her clean off her feet and walks her back to the blankets piled on the floor. He drops her onto the makeshift bed, and she grunts on impact. He immediately turns around and heads back for the door.

Rey leaps back to her feet, but this time she didn’t chase after him.

“Fine! Leave me here! See what happens! I’ll just steal your ship! I already know how to fly it.”

Mando pauses midstep, and she can hear his sigh all the way across the hull as he drops his head in defeat. She wasn’t serious about her threat, but he must believe her because he turns back around and makes a small gesture with his head.

“Go put on your shoes. It’s _cold_.”

Rey jumps at his command to do as he said, taking care to wrap her legs and exposed wrists to shield from the cold weather. It’d been cold on Jakku, so she’s sure she can handle it. Mr. Mando was probably just being dramatic.

Mando eventually found a thick canvas that would do well for a small cloak, and a spare cowl similar to her tattered thin one to pull over her nose and head beneath the cloak. He helped fit the collar over her head properly then adjusted the dark canvas around her shoulders, clasping it together loosely at her neck to form a small hood.

“Stay close to me.” Rey stood beside him, with the hood of her new cloak pulled over her head. The ramp slowly lowered and immediately Rey winced at the cold sting of wind that hit her face. The breeze was strong and brisk, and the ground was all _white_!

“Is that snow?!” She gasped then ran down the ramp and reached down to gather a bundle of it in her hands, holding it out to Mando proudly as his boots step down into the snow with a soft crunch. There wasn’t much but a small layer over the ground, the rest seemed to be ice. Mando only nods his head slightly and pulls out a small metal box with a blinking light. Rey drops the snow, curiosity now diverted to the object in his hand, and moves closer to him to try and see what it was.

The cold hits her all over again. Her entire body shivers and she wraps the cloak around herself as she hugs her arms close. “What’s that?” She asks, doing her best to keep her teeth from chattering, but Mando doesn’t answer her and simply turns and begins walking in a seemingly random direction, so she’s given no choice but to trot along after him. 

It was _cold_. Mando was definitely right about that, but she stubbornly followed along behind him, using his large body as a shield from the brisk wind. Eventually they came across a speeder, or really, a speeder came across them, and they rode to a nearby town. Rey thought it was a lot nicer to ride in the speeder, than to walk. Sure, it was slightly colder with the wind, but she could pull her legs up close to her chest and use the cloak to block out the harsh weather. Also, Mando let her curl up pretty close to him during the ride and he was really warm too, so that helped. Plus her toes didn’t have to freeze as she trudged across the ice.

Though, when it came time to get _off_ the speeder, Rey absolutely did not want to. She had been nice and warm sitting next to Mando, but when he moved off the speeder the cold hit her once more and she was just so tired and cold, and she wanted to go back to the ship now. She remained curled up on the seat, ignoring the pilot’s instruction for her to get off and instead tucked her face back into her knees.

“Kid,” Mando snapped at her sharply, his irritation was clear.

“I’m cold,” Rey whined shaking her head and pulling her cloak further around her small body.

Strong hands nudged beneath her arms and lifted her off the speeder and back onto the cold ground. Mando didn’t say a word, not even a muttered “ _I told you so_ ” under his breath which was nice of him. They walked a bit closer to the small city that Rey could barely make out through the snowy wind and the speeder took off.

Mando stopped suddenly a few yards in and Rey took advantage of the moment and hid herself beneath Mando’s soft cape, pulling it around herself, alongside her own cloak, while she pressed up closeto his leg for some sort of warmth. He didn’t say anything and just took out the blinking box again, but this time it emitted a rhythmic beep along with each blink. He put it back on his belt and started walking, forcing Rey to let go and fall in line behind him once more.

A few yards in and she had had enough of the sharp sting of wind and she grabbed a fistful of Mando’s cape to guide her. She dropped her head and squeezed her eyes shut hoping the dry sting in her eyes would leave… She should’ve brought her goggles with her.

She didn’t even bother to count her steps, trusting Mando to take the lead in finding their way back--

“Ouch!”

She rubbed her forhead and looked up when she hit her head on a bit of metal. It was the back clasp of Mando’s belt. He’d stopped in front of a big building and she’d run right into him. Her mouth opens in a slight ‘o’ as she looked up at it, losing her grip on Mando’s cape as soon as the door in front of him swished open. No building in Jakku she’d seen had ever looked this nice.

He walks in and Rey is quick to follow, shying away at all the faces staring at them.

And the next few events that transpired had Rey’s lingering suspicions completely confirmed. Mando was totally _awesome_!

She couldn’t help but wince when that one creature she’d never seen before got cut in half by the door, but everything else was so cool! And she was sure to tell Mando as much.

She will admit though, once those guys were starting to crowd around them at the bar, she got a little nervous, but wow! She couldn’t wait to be like Mando one day! Maybe he could teach her some cool moves.

She pulled down the collar fit over her nose and grinned up at Mando, bouncing on the balls of her feet. He turns to look at the bartender and nodded down at her. “Milk for her.” He placed some credits on the counter and the bartender stared for just a little while before scurrying to do as requested, and Rey happily climbed up onto one of the stools so she could accept the glass from the kind man.

Mando went off to speak to the blue fish looking character as she drank. She’d never drank anything like it before and it was delicious! She grinned at the man who’d given her the glass and thanked him politely.

“You’re welcome Little One.”

Rey turns in her seat to look over at Mando, but his back was blocking anything worth seeing. “Who’s that blue guy Mando’s talking to?” She asked the bartender.

“A Mythrol. I don’t know his name.”

Rey turns to look at him fully again, leaning against the bar and propping her chin up on her hands. “What’s Mando want with him? And why were those guys so mean?”

The man looked nervous as he took a glance over at Mando before looking back at her. “Well he’s done something bad enough worth luring out such a skilled bounty hunter… and as for those men… well they aren’t so fond of newcomers.”

“Ohhh,” Rey nods, pulling her finger along the hard wood of the countertop to trace a long scratch. But then the man sets another full glass of that milk in front of her with a soft smile.

“This one’s on the house. As thanks to your Mando for kicking some sense into those bullies.”

Rey smiles at him, all teeth, and leans in to whisper. “I think he likes beating up bullies. So, it’s no problem.’

Just as she finishes her second glass, she felt the now familiar grip of Mando’s hand around her bicep and she’s hoisted off the barstool. She knows well enough to understand that means it’s time to go. And just like that they’re back to walking across the ice, but this time with a cuffed Mythrol following along behind them.

Rey had grabbed onto the fringe of Mando’s cape again as they walked, and she turned around to look behind her at the strange looking blue man, crooking a brow as she studied him closely. There were a lot of types of people on this planet that she’d never seen before.

“I’m Rey,” she introduced herself to him and Mythrol stuttered awkwardly in return before smiling back at her. He looked cold just like she was. She turned back around and tugged on Mando’s cape.

“Are we done? Are we going back to the ship now?”

“Yes,” Mando answered, but continued to walk. Rey started to get excited when she saw the guy they’d come across at the speeder drop off. That meant they got to ride back to the ship and she didn’t have to walk no more!

She let go of Mando’s cape and raced ahead of him, bouncing impatiently beside the hooded figure while Mando finally caught up.

“We need passage to the yards,” Mando says.

The whistler guy whistles on his flute and a pretty, gold speeder pulls up. It was probably the newest and nicest looking thing Rey had ever seen in her whole entire life and she was already jumping at the bit to crawl up into the speeder, but Mando grabs onto her cloak and tugs her back towards him just as her hands touch the cool metal.

“No droids,” Mando instructs, tossing the guy an extra credit.

Rey can’t help but make a face and disgruntled squawk as the next speeder rolls around. She’s scrounged up better scrap than that hunk of junk, and she’s not nearly as eager to climb into that speeder as she was the other one. Why would Mando pass up such a nice speeder for this scrappy one? It was a terrible choice in her opinion. Mando lifts her into it anyways and follows her in.

She ends up smushed close to Mando, sitting between him and Mythrol because there were only two proper seats, and Mando didn’t seem to want her sitting so close to the strange blue man. But she wasn’t complaining at all because that just meant she got to be extra warm and toasty curled up under the arm Mando had stretched over her shoulders for room.

Mythrol speaks up after a few minutes into the ride. “You know what he’s looking for…” Rey peaks her head up from where it was tucked into Mando’s armpit. She looked between the blue man and the pilot with the binoculars looking out onto the ice. “You’re looking for Ravanaks, right?”

Rey’s eyes widened.

_That didn’t sound good._

“What are Ravanaks?” She whispered to Mando just loud enough to be heard over the buzz of the speeder. He looked down at her, and she couldn’t be sure if he was going to answer her or not. It was usually a 50/50 shot with him, but before he could the bearded man in front of them spoke up to answer Mythrol.

“It’s clear right now. But be careful near the port. Everyone dumps their Gray Holds out. They think the whole entire planet is their own personal stink pit.”

Rey grabs a fist of fabric on Mando’s padding beneath his armor and tugs to get his attention. “What’s he talkin’ ‘bout?” She wasn’t really worried, per se. More so curious. After watching Mando beat up all those guys at the cantina she’s not really worried about anything happening if he’s there… but the blue guy does look kinda worried. She looks over at him and pats him gently on the arm to reassure him as they finally come up on Mando’s ship.

Mythrol looks up at the ship and his mouth falls open. “You’re kidding me right.”

“Get out.” Mando grunts at him. And then his arm around her shoulder falls behind her back as he sits forward, wrapping it around her waist to lift her out of the speeder with him. Her legs hang, back pressed against Mando’s chestplate. He sets her on her feet once he’s on the ground then reaches behind to haul Mythrol out far less gentle than he had her.

Rey bounces, eager to get back into the ship and wrap herself in warm blankets again. Mythrol is mumbling some nonsense to Mando as he pays the speeder pilot and moves towards the ship.

“You think there’s really something to worry about?” Rey hears Mythrol ask Mando. She looks up at him too, wondering what his answer might be, but as usual he says nothing and continues walking. Rey watches Mythrol and looks out where he’s watching the speeder glide above the ice, and it was just in time to see the ice break open and something really big grab the speeder above.

Mythrol screams and Rey’s eyes bug out in awe.

“Open the hatch! Open it!” He stands there, watching the ice crack towards them, and she stood there, watching him. But then Mando grabbed her and practically threw her through the open hatch of the ship before going back for Mythrol just before the giant monster with fangs could eat him. Rey watched the entire thing, peeking her head out of the hatch.

It all happens so fast.

“WOAH! That thing is huge!” She yells with a wide grin. “That’s so cool!”

Mando ignores her and beelines up to the cockpit with Mythrol and Rey can feel the unsteady take off beneath her feet, and the hard jolts as the monster fighting to pull them back to the ground. And sure enough as soon as she started feeling just a bit nervous about the situation, Mando comes stomping down the ladder with his rifle in hand, moving towards the open hatch.

Rey moves to follow him, of course, eager to see what awesomeness he was going to do this time to fight against the big sea monster. “Get back kid,” He yells, pushing her back with his hand as he leans out the ship. All she sees is a flash of blue on the sea monster before he splashes back under the ice and the ship blasts into the sky. It sends her stumbling back onto her butt, but she’s grinning all the same.

“What even is that thing?” She points to the rifle in Mando’s hand.

“It’s an Amban rifle.” He holds out his hand to help her off the floor. She takes it and lets him pull her up off the floor. “Grab your blanket and come up. It’s warmer up top.” He points to her blanket pile and moves to the ladder. Rey’s not far behind him.

And she finds the blue faced Mythrol sitting in her seat, and she frowns at him.

“You’re sitting in my spot,” she tells him, crossing her arms over her chest.

Mythrol silently looks from her and then to Mando who’d just taken a seat in his own chair, then back to her before slowly standing and moving towards the seat opposite her.

She gets all settled in the chair before they even break through the atmosphere, meaning she gets to help Mando go through the motions of stabilizing the ship by pressing whatever buttons he told her, and soon they’re cruising in space and Rey loves it just as much as the first time.

She pulls her feet up into the seat, wrapping the blanket around her shoulders to get settled for the long ride. She’s tempted to break the silence, but she’s not so sure with this new character joining them.

Mythrol turns out to be the one to break the silence. “I like your ship.” Rey turns her head to look at him curiously. “She’s a classic. Razor Crest, am I right? Pre-Empire”

 _Ah a Razor Crest… that’s what the ship was_. She feels she should’ve known that, but considering she mostly worked with Imperial ships she didn’t dwell much on it.

He continues talking and Mando continues to say nothing. She glances between the two, expecting Mando to step in and offer at least a small tidbit of conversation like he did for her when she did the exact same on their ride to Maldo Kreis.

“How much are they paying you?” He waits for an answer, and Rey finally had enough. She rolls her eyes and turns to look at the fish man because apparently, he couldn’t catch a hint.

“He doesn’t talk much.” She shrugs her shoulders, and the corner of her lip rises like ‘what can you do?’ But then she pauses… curious. She wonders if Mando would talk to her, or if he was in a mood because she threatened to steal his ship that morning.

She could feel her tummy starting to growl just a bit. Not at all the hunger of what she’s felt before, but she could do with eating soon, especially after that time spent being super duper cold. That’s probably the perfect way to test her theory.

“Mando… can I have food now,” she braces her hand on her stomach and licks her lips, “I’m hungry.”

He shuffles slightly in his seat but he still doesn’t say anything as he reaches his arm out towards her with a ration bar in his hand. She takes it from him gently with an upbeat ‘thank you’. That wasn’t exactly talking, but it was a response, so she’ll take that as a win!

The bar didn’t taste like much, but she doesn’t care. It’s food and she’s learned to treasure food no matter what it was when she came upon it. She’s halfway through the bar before she realized that maybe Mando had been keeping that in his pocket for himself… and it would have been rude not to at least offer him the rest.

“Did you want some Mando?” She holds the half-eaten ration out to him, but he shakes his head without looking at her.

“It’s all yours kid.”

She senses Mythrol’s eyes on her as she takes her last bite. He’s staring at her curiously. “Are you his daughter? Or just another bounty?”

Rey glares at him. “What’s it to you fish face?”

She thinks she might hear a noise come from Mando’s direction, but she couldn’t be sure and turns her body away from Mythrol. She didn’t like him all that much anymore. She chomped down on the last bite from the portion bar, stuffing her mouth full as she tried to chew while maintaining her harsh glare.

Soon enough fish face caved and was excusing himself to use the vac tube… she wrinkled her nose as he left then turned to look at the back of Mando’s helmet. “Do you want me to follow him? I betcha he’s gonna try something sneaky.” She does her best to speak around the bar she’s still working hard to chew on. But her words still come out a bit muffled she thinks.

“Oh, he most definitely will.” He clicks a few buttons and flips a few switches on the control panel before standing from his seat. His cape swooshes slightly as he stands and turns to leave, and Rey’s already scrambling into a position to vault off her seat and follow him, but he stops her by raising his palm towards her. “Stay here,” he instructs firmly, “I’ll come up and get you in a moment.”

Rey huffs and falls back into her chair, crossing her arms over her chest. She’s already seen Mando beat up people, slice them in half, and freeze them into some sort of metal contraption! She’s pretty sure she’s already seen the worst of it, but still she obeys him. She doesn’t want him to get upset… She didn’t want him changing his mind about bringing her to his home and end up dropping her back off at Jakku. As much as she wanted to wait around in case her parents came back for her, she didn’t want to spend the rest of her life working for Unkar Plutt, when she had the option to explore the galaxy _and_ look for her parents. For the first time since she could ever remember she wasn’t hungry, thirsty, and cold. Her skin wasn’t dry and itchy, and even though the tunic Mando had let her borrow was a bit big for her frame, it was clean and soft, and she _loved_ it. And the best of all… she wasn’t alone anymore. She _hated_ being alone. And she really liked Mando, he took care of her real well like she imagined a parent would,

So, to appease the Mandalorian, she sat obediently in her seat, watching the door earnestly. She felt uneasy not being able to see him. Logically she knew he couldn’t go anywhere… they were in the middle of space… but she couldn’t help but feel lonely and rigid in her chair as she was left to wait for his return.

When the door finally swishes open, she leaps up, feet on the cushion of her chair and bracing her hand against the back as she stared at Mando expectantly.

“C’mon kid.” Then he turns back around, and Rey is quick to follow him into the hull.

He sits across from her, watching her tear pieces of meat off the jerky he’d heated up for her, then drink gulps of chilled water. She offered him a piece of her food several times, feeling guilty to eat while he wasn’t… in fact she hadn’t seen him eat anything at all since she met him.

“Do you even eat food?” She asks as she gnaws at a particularly thick portion of the long strip of meat.

“Occasionally,” he answers.

She frowns at him, lower lip jutting out in an unbidden pout.

“You really don’t talk much, do you.”

Mando tilts his helmet to the side before shrugging slightly and leaning back against the metal hull of the ship.

Rey squints her eyes at him.

“Are you a human?”

“Yes.”

“Oh,” she muses silently, brows furrowing cutely as she tries to form her next question. “Well, are you ugly or something?”

He makes a weird noise and she couldn’t be sure whether it was because he was amused or offended. And instead of indulging her incessant questions, Mando stands up from his crate.

“When you’re finished you can help me make the jump to hyperspace. We should have cleared the airfield by now.”

Rey nods slowly and begins chewing on the end of the jerky strip. She wonders if she upset him in some way… maybe he actually was ugly underneath the helmet and he was embarrassed because she figured it out. She just couldn’t think of any other reason why he would keep that shiny helmet on his head all the time.

Oh well.

She still liked him well enough even though he was probably ugly.

* * *

Rey gets one last nap in before they reach Nevarro. She had fallen asleep in the co-pilot chair after refusing to go down into the hull when Mando suggested she go get some rest. She wakes up to Mando tapping her on the knee. 

She yawns and lifts her arms to stretch them with a small grunt before opening her eyes to squint up at him with sleepy eyes. He’s standing up, leaning down slightly over her chair as he speaks in a low baritone to not startle her. “I’m going to meet with someone to collect my credits so I can buy you the things you’ll need before I bring you to the covert. I’ll come back for you when I’m finished. You. Stay.”

“No,” she instantly whines, “I wanna go with you.”

He shakes his head. “Not a good idea.” He takes a step back and turns to walk out the cockpit without leaving any time for more of an argument.

Rey, of course, jumps up to follow him. She keeps her blanket taut around her shoulders, letting it sway behind her like Mando’s cape.

“Please don’t leave me here,” she begs him softly. She refuses to cry again, but she really doesn’t want to be left alone on a strange planet in an empty ship, and she’s quickly beginning to feel overwhelmed after just waking up.

Mando sighs like he’s apologetic but there’s nothing he could do about it. “Kid, it’s dangerous.”

Rey sniffles and rubs at her cheeks roughly when she feels her eyes begin heating up. “Y-yeah but-but won’t I be safer if I was with you and not by myself.”

Mando doesn’t move. His helmet doesn’t even tilt expressively like it usually does when she says something and he doesn’t respond. He just stares at her.

He was apparently contemplating whether to give in or not because only a few minutes later he’s dropping his head and shaking it before releasing a long sigh. “Kriff.”

She ends up walking beside him as they make their way through the large village. She fists the trim of Mando’s cape between her fingers as she walks, turning her head from right to left at the sight of all these new looking people and things. She looks down occasionally at the grey, ashy ground and then up at the dull blue sky and the various array of oddly constructed buildings. Everything was so foreign… almost the opposite of Jakku

“Where are we going?” She asks Mando, looking up at him, but he doesn’t answer her. He just continues walking until they come onto a big building like in Maldo Kreis, and Mando walks right through the door as it swishes open for him.

There were so many people! All kinds too! And most types Rey had never even seen before.

As Mando walks, his boots clink and everyone turns to look at them. The once chattering cantina quickly grows silent. She just supposes she’ll have to get used to the attention because it seems Mando had this effect on people no matter where he went.

Rey’s too busy watching everyone else to notice Mando was approaching a man in a booth.

“Ahh that was fast, did ya catch them all?” He says and Rey’s head swivels just in time to watch Mando place down four fobs onto the table in front of the man with the mustache. “Good I’ll begin the offload.” He then speaks to a man behind them and Rey tries to crane her head around Mando’s body to see him as well, but he’s walking off already. Then she feels Mando grab her by the arm and guide her towards the booth. She slides in, awkwardly shuffling to make room for Mando as he unclipped his rifle from around his back.

“It looks like you picked up an extra hand during your travels,” the man with the mustache said with a smile directed at her. She smiled back as Mando sat down beside her.

“Yep!” Rey grinned, shuffling a bit more so she was now seated comfortably on her knees. “I’m Rey! I help him fly his ship!” She sticks out her hand towards the man and he smiles and shakes hers with his larger hand.

“I’m Greef. You seem like a mighty fine pilot, little one. I hope your keeping your new Mandalorian friend here in line.” Rey smiles at him… she’s decided that she likes him.

Mando ignores the small talk and stares at Greef causing the man to clear his throat and turn to fetch something from a satchel attached to his belt. Then he places a stack of credits on the table and Rey felt her eyes bug from her skull. Mando got _all_ those credits?? No wonder he had so many fancy things!

“Those are Imperial credits,” Mando comments distastefully. Rey turns to look at him, dumbfounded. Credits were still credits and that was a lot of credits! To her at least. Maybe it wasn’t to Mando… he did have a working ship after all. But imagine how many portions that could buy!

He ends up bartering for half the number of credits and Rey frowns at the end of the transaction… Mando was a good fighter but he apparently wasn’t very great at negotiating; worse than she is with Unkar. As they start talking more about Mando’s next bunch of bounties Rey spots a red Rodian at the bar. They looked just like Rodey! Except they weren’t green. They was drinking something bright blue and it looked delicious.

She pulls at Mando’s arm at the first lull in conversation. He turns to look at her and she points adamantly towards the Rodian taking another sip from his glass. “What’s that blue stuff?”

Mando, as well as Greef turn in the direction she’s pointing. Greef laughs loud and joyful, unlike Mando’s disgruntled scoff.

“That’s Spotchka little one. I’m not so sure you’d like it very much,” Greef says. Then he turns to address Mando. “She’s not gotten out much, has she?”

“Can I try it?” Rey interjects curiously. She liked that milk from the other bar, so maybe she’d like the blue drink too.

“No,” Mando replies gruffly. Rey glares at him, lips pursing tightly as her brows draw together.

Greef apparently finds it amusing, but he does take her side. “Let the kid have a little taste Mando. She’s curious. It’s on the house.”

Rey folds her fingers and leans towards Mando, batting her eyelashes, “pleasepleaseplease pleeeeasssse.”

“No.” Mando replies sternly without giving it a second thought. Then he turns to Greef to scold him with a sharp growl under his breath. “She’s a child.”

Greef waves it off with a roll of his eyes then winks over at her. “Never took you to be the strict parent, Mando.” 

Mando stiffens and pauses. He completely disregards the entire exchange they just had and continues with his previous discussion, leaving Rey to sit back in the booth with a slight huff.

“What’s your highest bounty?”

* * *

“So, what was Greef talking about?” Rey quizzes. “Is it a hard job? Where do we have to go?” She tucks her chin down to look down at the tunic Mando is holding against her chest. It was a bit wide at the girth and he seemed to agree with her observation. He turns to place it neatly back onto the stack and move further down the stall to the next size down.

He seemed to prefer the darker cloths, while Rey typically preferred lighter colors, but she felt far too nosey to really care about the color of her clothes that he was picking out. She’s much more interested in why Mando and Greef were being so cryptic and why Mando refused to explain it to her.

“Do you like this one?” He holds up a nice long-sleeved tunic a little lighter than his own and a bit darker than her old clothes. It had dark stitching around the seams, but overall, it seemed sturdy and comfy. So, she nods and Mando drapes it over his arm like he had with the trousers and vest they’d picked out earlier.

Rey hurries along beside him when he starts up a brisk pace to the next stall. She grabs his cape and continues her questions. “What was that card he gave you? Do we have to go back to Jakku? Because then we could check in with Unkar to see if my parents came by while I was away.”

Mando stops in front of another stall, this time one that held a variety of different shoes.

“Kava much che doe shoes?”

He barters the price a bit with the stall owner and soon Rey has a brand-new pair of sturdy boots. They have to move through a variety of sizes before they find the one closest to fitting her small feet, but she squeals in delight at the feel. She’d never had a pair of brand-new shoes before.

She opens her mouth to ask another question she knows Mando won’t answer, but Mando shushes her before she could.

“No more questions. It’s time to go. Come.”

“Where? Where are we going?!” Rey asks excitedly, reaching to grab the fringes of his cape like she’d grown used to doing, but Mando grabs her wrist and pulls her along beside him at a hurried pace.

“I said no more questions.”

“Oh. Right.” Rey muttered. “Sorry.”

She’s pulled along past many more vendors, but this time it was food! It was such a variety she could only dream of. She’ll have to ask Mando about it on their way back, because right now he doesn’t seem so keen on her asking many questions. He pulls her into a dark doorway, pushing past a heavy curtain and guiding her through while looking back as if to watch if they were being followed.

Rey catches herself just in time from asking where they were going again.

They slowly descend a nice spirally staircase made of stone. It was dark and kind of creepy but it was also really cool. Mando walks at a fairly brisk pace through the hall and then she sees them…

There are a ton of Mandos! Like, so many of them! A few are holding big guns, but then she looks from side to side and she sees some playing a game and another writing something in a book. Mando tugs her closer to himself just as a few Mando kids come barreling past them, giggling the whole way and Rey has the sudden urge to join them. She gasps in excitement, eager to run off and play. She’d never been around other kids before.

As they pass, they all turn their heads to stare, even the kids. They didn’t seem to be staring at Mando this time though. Mando keeps walking, keeping his firm grip around her wrist, but now the other Mandos are following behind them. And the further they move through the underground tunnels, the more Mandalorians they cross paths with and the more that are added to the large group following quietly to wherever it was they were headed.

Rey turns her head over her shoulder to look at the large mass of armored Mandalorians, none of which had their helmets removed. Her nose wrinkled in confusion because they couldn’t _all_ be ugly. And she’s biting her tongue trying to keep all her questions from spilling out and inevitably irritating Mando.

She pulls her wrist from his grasp and grabs his hand with her own to tug on it. “Can I ask questions now?”

“That was a question,” he responded with a small snap in his tone.

Rey grunts in frustration and pulls her arms over her chest, but she follows him anyway.

Mando turns into an orange tinted room. There’s a Mando with a gold helmet standing by a big pit of weird fire. And Mando just stands there. Rey turns her head and finds all the other Mandalorians that had followed them gathered outside.

“Who is this?” The one with the gold helmet asked. She was a woman, Rey noted. She also really like her fur cape; it looked soft.

Mando grabs her by the arm and pulls her to stand in front of him, on display for the Mandalorian at the fire to see. “She is a Foundling.”

Rey cranes her head up to look at Mando behind her.

“Your Foundling?” The lady asks.

“I did find her, yes, but I don’t feel I’m ready yet to take on a Foundling.”

Rey frowns, puckering her nose.

What was Mando trying to say? It’s not like she begged him to take her from Jakku, he’d practically forced her! And now he’s saying that he doesn’t really think he wants her?

“I see,” the lady muses, “and you wish to leave her in the care of the tribe.”

“Yes.” Mando nods. “My way of living is no life for a child.”

“What?” Rey squeaks, pulling away from Mando, who’s hands rested on her shoulders, so she could look at him fully. “What-what’s going on?”

The gold helmeted Mandalorian approaches and Rey shrinks back, inching closer to Mando again. “What is confusing to you little one?”

Rey stared at her with wide eyes, then turned to look at all the other Mandalorians outside the room quietly observing. “I-I thought I was gonna stay with Mando and his clan. I-I…” she pauses and looks up at Mando with watery eyes. “You’re leaving me here?”

Mando places a large hand on her shoulder and she likes to think that maybe he’s smiling down at her, but she knows better. He turns to look back up at the woman. “She does not like it when I leave.”

The woman turns towards the fire slightly. “Nor does any child when their parent leaves.”

“She is not my Foundling.” Din comments sternly.

“Yet she has already formed a strong attachment to you.” The lady comments just as fiercely.

“It is not safe for her to be with me.”

Rey turns her head back to the woman ready for her to take her side again and insist Mando bring her along with him. She could hold her own! Mando didn’t need to take care of her! She survived two years all by herself without any parents.

“Very well…”

 _No_.

“The child will stay with the tribe. We will find her a proper buir.”

Rey’s heart drops. She feels the slightest squeeze of Mando’s fingers on her shoulders as he lets her go and approaches the woman to offer out the clothes he had picked for her among the market vendors.

Rey grabbed the fabric of his pants and tugged angrily. “Take me back!” She yelled at him. “Take me back home! I don’t want to be here! I hate it here! Take me back!”

Din takes several steps away allowing the woman room to take control of the situation. She places a hand on her shoulder just like Mando did and spoke to her with a stern yet soothing tone in her voice. “Little one. It is alright. Din will come and visit you when he stops by the covert, but it is best for you to stay here.”

Rey pulls away from her, giving her an odd look. “Din?”

Then she gestures towards Mando, who didn’t appear to be all that pleased that his name had been given to her.

Rey rushes towards him, hoping if she could get to him fast enough and latch on, he won’t be able to leave her here with all these strangers in this dark place. But a firm arm around her waist stops her. “No! Let go of me!” She kicks and squirms to escape the hold, but it doesn’t relent.

“I think it’s best I go.” Din says slowly, “I will return soon.”

And then he backs from the room.

“DIN!” Rey cries out desperately, feeling the tears already beginning to burst through once more. “Don’t leave me here please! Please don’t leave!”

She watches the back of his helmet as he edges through the throng of Mandalorians and disappears beyond the doorway, hoping he might turn around and change his mind, but he doesn’t so much as waver in his step. He’s gone.

He walks away from her.

Just like her parents did two years prior.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys are enjoying it so far! I know I left it on a bit of a cliffhanger this chapter, I'm sorry, but I promise I'll fix it.


	3. A Foundling

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading and commenting! It truly does make my day to see that people are enjoying this!  
> I will try to keep a schedule of updates every Saturday. I'm not very great with deadlines, but I'll try my best!

Din rubs his thumb over the smooth surface of the beskar ingot he held in his hand. He stood outside the entrance to the covert, staring at the cloth draped over the entrance as he contemplated whether he should come back another time after Rey had more time to grow used to the others. Then again, she might’ve calmed down soon after he left the day prior.

He's put this off for an entire day already… much longer than he should have. He could be halfway to Arvala by now if he had simply left right after receiving his assignment. But his worry and insecurity had got the best of him and he spent the better part of the day doing menial repairs to his ship and stocking up on rations and other essentials he’s burned through as he continuously fretted over returning to the covert to see how Rey was adjusting. And maybe even perhaps offer a proper fairwell with a promise to return any word he may find about her parents.

Soon after he left, he had regretted not staying a bit longer to help her adjust. It was a startling change in environment for her, being dumped into a maze of dark sewers surrounded by masked faces of unfamiliar characters. He’d been through the same affair when he was brought to the Mandalorians, but there were many there more than willing to care for him and nurture him until he was able to begin his training, and he knows that’s what Rey needed. He never had a proper buir or Mandalorian family of his own, and the closest he had to one was the man who had saved him. He died soon after Din began his training, but the tribe still raised him alongside the other Foundlings, as if he was one of their own.

Times were different now. Foundlings were rare and very special to the tribe, even more so than before. There were many practiced Mandalorian mothers and fathers in the covert that would be more than willing to take in such a promising young child as Rey and be a much better caretaker to her than Din himself. She needed the support and stability that he could never offer her, but still… that didn’t ease the guilt.

This morning is when he had made his decision. He was never one to loiter, and he never dallied when it came to a job, yet this time he felt a pull keeping him grounded on this ashy planet. So, he figured it would be best to make quick work of this and be on his way to rid himself of these distractions. One visit to the armorer and a couple questions of the girl’s wellbeing and that would be all. No strings attached.

He pulls the drapes back and begins his descent to the underground tunnels, and once he’s passed through the first threshold, he’s immediately stopped by a large hand extending from the shadows and landing on his chest. His first instinct is to attack before his opponent can exploit the well-executed surprise, but patience and reason remind him he’s in the covert and there were no enemies down here.

So, he simply raises his hand to clasp down on the gloved wrist on his chest in warning.

“You shouldn’t have come back,” Paz replied with a gruff and irritated tone, as he stepped from the dark shadows. “It will upset the child again.”

Din turns his head to look up at the taller Mandalorian. Paz has been a close companion of his since he was young, and still one of many he considers to be a trusted friend.

“I didn’t come to see her,” he lied.

“You should’ve taken her with you,” Paz snaps right back at him; never one to beat around the bush. “She is a Foundling, and she is scared. She doesn’t trust us. You should’ve stayed at least until she grew comfortable.”

Din grips Paz’s wrist even tighter pulling it away from his chest plate with a scowl. “I have a job. It is not safe for her.”

“She is a fighter,” Paz counters.

Din pushes away from him, moving further through the halls to try and put an end to the discussion. Paz follows him though, continuing with his lecture which Din tries to ignore. “She has tried running three times since you left and fought Gutt and Ovod with a staff she stole from the armory. We had to lock her away with the healer, away from the other children.”

“She will grow used to you all here,” Din replied, “just like she did me.”

“Don’t be so sure of that Djarin. She’s as bull-headed as you. _Atin Djarin_ ,” Paz mutters the familiar exclamation under his breath and Din smirks beneath the helmet. Paz was most definitely right, Rey was quite stubborn from what he could tell so far.

Paz followed him to the armorer’s forge, loitering around by the entrance as Din’s new pauldron was crafted out of his newly acquired beskar.

“This is extremely generous,” the armorer states as the molten beskar fits into the mold. “The excess will sponsor many foundlings… including the new adiik you brought to us.”

“That’s good.” He can feel the strong glare of Paz burning into the back of his helmet. “She will make a powerful Mandalorian.”

“That she will,” the armorer agrees.

When the pauldron is finished, she approaches and attaches it to his body stocking. “The little one has caused quite the ruckus down here,” she announces while taking a single step away from him to admire her work.

“So, I’ve been told,” Din stands, turning to retrieve his Amban rifle that he’d propped against the wall when he arrived.

“She has nearly been successful in leaving the covert herself… had she been she would have exposed the location of the tribe.”

Din pauses, back still to her and he turns around slowly.

“Most Foundlings are not so fierce. Where does she come from?”

He turns to her, ignoring the pointed nod of his helmet that Paz directs towards him. “I found her on a backwater skug hole called Jakku. She was a slave scrapper for two years after her parents abandoned her there.”

The armorer nods once and turns back towards the smelter. “She is strong, but she will need proper guidance and training.”

“Yes,” Din agrees. That is exactly why he brought her here.

She turns back to face him, now several feet away and her hands clasped behind her back. “She will not find that here.”

Din takes a startled step towards her. “What do you mean?”

“She does not trust easily, and she will have no trust for us that much is clear. We were not the ones to save her, and she will grow to resent the tribe. Any training we will provide to her as we would a Foundling would prove as a danger to the tribe and the rest of the Foundlings. The anger and desperation I sense in her will only give more strength; a corrupted strength absent of honor or trust. I’ve seen it happen twice before. Neither ended well for Mandalor. and just like them she will grow to hate the Mandalorians for stealing her from her home twice over.”

“Twice?”

“You, Djarin. You were her second home whether you may see it that way or not.”

“She has only known me for a short time. That’s not possible.”

“She was abandoned as a young child Djarin… by parents who may or may not have loved her. Care, stability, and trust has been absent most of her young life, and you were the first to give it to her after many years of imposed independence and suffering. It was inevitable for her to form such a strong attachment. And it is very well that after you left her here, she will never care to trust anyone again. In her eyes, you were as her new father. Another father who abandoned her.”

“I cannot care for a Foundling,” Din reiterates desperately. _He cannot care for a Foundling_. “It is too dangerous.”

“So, it is your job to protect her.”

“I can’t--”

“You will.” Paz steps in, voice strong and undeterred. “The Foundling has chosen _you_ and it would be dishonorable to decline. This is the way.”

“This is the way,” the armorer speaks in response, and then both turn towards him expectantly.

Din hesitates, feeling a surge of panic overcome him. He had no choice… this was the way. It was only a technicality, but one that left him no choice. And by denying this responsibility, he would in a sense be abandoning his own child, which by extension would be breaking his creed. _Dar’manda_.

“This is the way.”

The armorer nods. “Good. Now the child has no need to know you did not request this privilege. You will raise her as your own, teach her the ways of Mandalor, and when she comes of age, she will have the choice to vow and accept the creed. Vizla will take you to where she’s being held.”

So, Paz leads Din further into the covert, past several gatherings of his tribe members and to a barred door Din knows to be the infirmary. He’d been a consistent guest to Xiyu during his early days of bounty hunting.

“Was she hurt?” Din asked.

Paz ignores him and lifts the latch of the heavy door to push it open.

“Xiyu, Rey’s buir is here for her. Thank you for watching over her.” Paz tells the tribe healer sitting beside the cot Rey had curled herself up on.

The older Mandalorian stands slowly and she makes her way towards the door with a small nod of her head. “That is good. She was not doing well. She is no longer angry... just sad and tired.” She pauses when she notices Din. “Djarin? You?”

He nods his head. There was no need in denying it anymore.

The older woman looks at him with a nod of approval. “She will do good for you Djarin.” Then she walks away without another word, and Paz makes a gesture for him to enter the room ahead of him.

“Kid,” Din speaks slowly, clearing his throat as he approaches the cot. He felt nervous and frustrated. He had no clue how to care for a child, and absolutely no desire to learn, but now he had to. There were so many things he needed to change and add to the Crest to fit her needs…

She recoils at his voice, pulling her face to her knees and hugging them close. She was still wearing his old tunic and had not changed into the new clothes he bought for her. They sat lying on a platform beside the cot, along with a few added accessories courtesy of the rest of the tribe.

“Rey, it’s time to go.”

She shakes her head stiffly, back still facing the two Mandalorians. “I don’t wanna go _anywhere_ with _you_ ,” she bites out with a nasty growl.

“Would you rather stay here then?” Din counters with a scoff.

Din can tell by the squaring of her shoulders that she found herself in a bit of deadlock and she mutters something under her breath which he could barely here.

“Where you gonna drop me off this time, _Mando_?” She says his name like it’s a curse in her mouth.

“He wants to take you with him,” Paz steps in, approaching the cot and effectively pushing Din out of the way to avoid the tension and anger from progressing any further. Apparently, having two frustrated, stubborn blockheads in the same room would not spawn a peaceful interaction.

Rey turns to look up at Paz, eyes rimmed red and puffy. She doesn’t look at Din. “Why?” She asks him, tears evident in her voice.

“Because you belong with him.” Paz takes her hand gently and helps her sit up on the cot. He’d always been particularly fond of children, ever since their teenage years. He did well with them… unlike Din. “Now let’s get you changed into those new clothes so you can be on your way verd’ika, yeah?”

She nods softly, rubbing one eye with the back of her hand and sniffling lightly. Paz gently lifts her from the cot and into his arms. Rey wraps her arms around his neck and drops her forehead against the large man’s shoulder which has Din scoffing scornfully.

_Bantha shit!_

Why isn’t Paz the one caring for the child?? He was obviously much better suited for a Foundling.

Paz must sense his glare and he turns towards him with the child in one arm as he scoops up her clothes in the other. He tilts his helmet, lifting the chin just enough so Din won’t mistake it for affection or curiosity, but as the challenge it was.

“Would you prefer to carry her?”

Din frowns. No, he’d rather not.

His fingers twitch and tense as he squeezes them together.

“She’s perfectly capable of walking on her own.”

The statement doesn’t please Paz, that much was clear, as he shoulders past Din and exits the room. He leads them towards a private area and sets Rey down on her feet. He’s squatted in front of her, holding out each item of clothing to her.

“Do you need any help? I can call Xiyu.”

She shook her head and took the clothes from him, retreating into the private room to change.

“She seemed awfully fond of you,” Din muttered once the thick curtain was pulled closed.

Paz turned to look at him. “The last I saw her she nearly tore my helmet after she knocked me on my back. That was the first I’d seen her act civil.”

Rey steps out from behind the curtain, wearing her new clothes. It fit her nicely. She wore a dark grey long tunic that went to midthigh sinched by a nice brown leather belt around her waist which had several accessories for attachments similar to Din’s. Over it she wore sleeveless vest with a high collar. And of course, the tan utility trousers and sturdy leather boots. She came out holding her old clothes to her chest shyly. Her hair was down, no longer in its braid and she looked up at Din with wide eyes and a sad frown.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, standing right in front of him. “I’m sorry I asked so many questions. I won’t anymore. I promise.” She shuffles closer to him, pressing her forehead against the soft padding below his cuirass.

Din sighed in resignation and placed his hand atop her head, gently petting her long brown hair to offer some sort of comfort.

“Don’t apologize for being curious,” he instructs softly.

She steps away from him, staring up into his visor with shiny eyes all the while. Then she turns to look over at Paz. “I’m sorry for being mean to you and everyone else.”

“There’s no need to worry about it verd’ika.” Rey smiles at him, seeming to be much less forlorn than before.

“Come,” Din says, ready to get back to his ship and get on his way. He gestures for Rey to begin walking in front of him, then turns his head to face Paz. “I’ll return soon.”

Rey doesn’t chatter his ear off as they walk back to the Crest. She doesn’t even grab onto his cloak as they march through the busy streets of Nevarro. Even once they’re sailing out the atmosphere and into the empty cavern of space, Rey had yet to express any excitement or curiosity. It was completely silent in the cockpit. She sat quietly in her chair, staring out at the stars without so much a word.

“Kid,” Din starts, unsure of what he even wanted to ask, “Is everything alright?”

He turns his head so he can peek over his shoulder at her, and she only shrugs her shoulders, pulling the blanket bunched in her hands over her nose.

Din spins in his chair to face her and she flinches away from him at the sudden movement.

“Rey.”

She looks at him with big eyes from underneath the hem of her blanket. “I-I…” she starts. “Are you taking me back to Jakku now?”

Din tilts his head at her in confusion. “No. You’re staying with me.”

“But-but I thought—”

Din spins his chair back around. “No, I’m not taking you back there end of story. There’s no one to look out for you there. It isn’t safe.”

There are a couple moments of silence and Din thinks maybe Rey got the point. “I-I didn’t mean I _wanted_ to go back…” she replies, her voice almost a squeak. “I just… I thought your tribe didn’t want to take care of me like you didn’t want to, and you were supposed to take me back.”

Din’s feels a sudden pain strike him in the chest and suddenly breathing made him nauseous. It’d been a while since he was able to actually sympathize with another person. And here Rey was sitting here thinking an entire tribe of people would turn their backs on her and leave her to the fate of the harsh wilderness of Jakku simply because she wasn’t wanted. How despicable the universe must have been to this little one for her to think anyone wouldn’t want her to be happy and safe.

Kriff, the only reason he handed her over the tribe to begin with was to keep her safe because he knew she wouldn’t be with him.

He sighs and slowly spins around once more. “That’s not what’s happening Rey.”

“Well, I sure know you didn’t come back for me! You obviously still don’t want me around!”

Din scowls. “You’re right,” he snaps at her, “I didn’t want you around. It’s dangerous and I don’t want to see you get hurt. That’s why I was taking you to my tribe; where you would have been safe while I looked for your family.” Rey stares at him and doesn’t utter a word to respond, and Din hesitates to continue. “Then they explained to me that you would do best staying with me. They would’ve loved to have you if you wanted to stay. Foundling’s are treasured by our culture; they are our future.”

“Oh.”

Din turns yet again, but Rey still hadn’t returned to her talkative self. Perhaps she was just tired like Xiyu had said. He glances down at the nav system he’d yet to set the coordinates into, then glanced back over his shoulder at Rey still staring out at the stars with a sad frown.

“Rey. Come here.” He gestures his hand to the space between himself and the control panel. “I need help inputting our next coordinates. And then I think it’s time you go down and sleep. It’s been a long day.”

Rey’s at his side in a matter of moments, wiping any lingering moisture in her eyes as she looks down at the display Din was pointing out to her. He guided her through punching in the correct numbers and she did well enough to coax a proud smile onto her face. She turned her grin up to him, looking for his validation and he gave it to her with a small nod of his head and awkward pat on the back.

“Now, go down and rest.”

Rey hesitates, her smile falling into a worried frown.

“You won’t leave me here?” Din doesn’t answer right away. “Right?” She reiterates a bit more desperately.

“No, I won’t leave you on the Crest.”

“Do you promise?” She holds up her hand to him, arching one brow in doubt.

Din stares at her outstretched palm in amusement. “What are you doing?”

Rey looks at him with a scoff. “It’s a handshake, dummy.” Din grunted. “It’s what people do when they agree on stuff,” she crosses her arms over her chest. “But you probably don’t know what that is, ‘cause you just punch ‘em till they do what you want.”

Din sighed to cover an involuntary chuckle and lifted his gloved hand towards her. She grabs it which ends up dwarfing her own as she shakes their joined hands adamantly and with such seriousness it was almost amusing.

Instead of letting go after the shake was finalized, Din gently tightens his grip on her hand and stands from the pilots chair, guiding her towards the ladder leading into the hull. It wasn’t exactly what he had expected of himself when he thought to tell the girl to go to bed, but something urged him to follow her down and make sure she was settled and comfortable in bed.

He begins by straightening out her bed of blankets on the floor which he had put the day prior as she went to the privy. So, it was all ready for her to dive right beneath the collection of blankets by the time she got out.

She’d forgone her new tunic and vest and had instead changed back into the oversized flight suit garb Din had let her borrow on her first night, claiming it was much more comfortable for sleeping. He says nothing more regarding that and drapes the top few blankets over her once she had settled.

“Am I allowed to ask questions?” She asks him meekly, pulling one of the blankets close to her nose as Din made sure she was situated properly and would remain warm throughout the night.

He nods.

“What kind of planet are we going to?”

Din stands and his knees pop slightly after kneeling on the hard floor. “It’s like Jakku, but with rocks.”

“Oh,” Rey nods, rolling onto her side so she could continue to look at him.

“Go to sleep.” He instructs with a tenderness that even surprised himself. “You need rest after such a long day.”

She listens. Smiling up at him just before her eyes slip closed. Her knees draw closer to her chest as she curls around her blankets. And he thinks she might have fallen asleep before he was even able to ascend the ladder.

* * *

It had taken approximately two and a half days before they landed on Arvala-7.

Din had used that time to clean the ship and do some on board maintenance he hadn’t gotten around to while he was twiddling his thumbs on Nevarro. Rey was a good help, always at his side and eager to aid him with whatever he asked, and apt to listen at whatever knowledge he was willing to bestow on her. She was much more subdued this time around though. She wasn’t nearly as talkative, and refrained from touching him in any way.

He should’ve found relief in her sudden change, but all he felt was guilt. He had broken her trust. The quiet was now almost suffocating in a way he’d never found it before, and it wasn’t like _he_ knew how to fill a void of silence. He was perfectly fine working in silence—awkward or not—but what irked him was knowing the child was upset with him. The child he was supposed to be caring for, and he didn’t know how to fix it.

She would ask a necessary question here and there, but never really stemming from her parched curiosity. And considering the little she knew about the galaxy beyond her small world of Jakku, that could prove to be a hindrance later on if this continued. As his logic dictated, it was good for a child to be curious and question their surroundings. It was how they learned.

However, that was a problem he’d decided was to be tackled another time when he was perhaps a bit more comfortable with this newfound guardianship role. Instead, he’d found that Rey was quite proficient with the mechanics of his ship and was quick to catch on to small things he’d teach her, similar to her “piloting” skills which consisted mainly of fabricated procedures to keep her busy and entertained amongst the unprogrammed buttons and switches beside her seat. Either way, she was good at following instructions, even when he could tell she found some things just a bit ludicrous.

They spent quite a bit of time with each other on the Crest during those two days. It was inevitable considering the cramped quarters. And Din made extra care not to scold or discourage her if it was not necessary which most times it definitely wasn’t.

So, by the time they had landed, it was easy to tell Rey had grown a bit more comfortable with him. She was eager to help him land the ship, and that time he may have given her a few _real_ switches to flip through. As soon as they’d touched down, she bolted down into the hull before everything could even be properly powered down. Din sighed in amusement and went about shutting down the Crest. By the time he’d slowly stepped his way into the hull, Rey was standing over by the loading ramp, dressed in her new clothes, hair done up in a proper braid, and her shoes on and ready to go with her makeshift staff in hand as she bounced on her toes.

“Someone’s eager.” He quipped lightly, tapping on his vambrace to open the weapons cabinet. He pulls out his rifle, tucks it under his arm and makes his way towards her, pushing a button on the control pad to lower the ramp. “Stick close to me. Understand?”

Rey nods emphatically, staring out at the rocky expanse that’s revealed as the ramp lowers to the muddy ground. Din could tell she was tempted to dart ahead of him to explore, but she does as he says and stays by his side as he moves to the middle of the small clearing he’d landed his ship in. He holds the fob outwards to test the signal and drops his arm in agitation as he looks out into the vacant landscape.

He turns towards Rey and holds out the fob towards her. “Your job is to hold this. Don’t lose it.”

She takes it from him, cradling it gently in her hands as she stares down at the blinking light. Din lifts his rifle to peer through the scope and she’s none the wiser as she traces the small box with her finger. Enthralled with the tiny device as it beeps slowly. She looks up just in time to see a big fishy creature charging right at them.

“Mando!” She shouts, startling the Mandalorian from his focus. He tosses her out of the way just as the beast grabs his arm and hauls him back a good ways, tossing him around like a dead womp rat.

Rey looked on horrified, frozen in place. For the first time since she met him, Mando didn’t seem to have the situation under control. It didn’t take but a couple more moments of her silent terror that she was shaking it off and charging the beast. It’d grabbed hold of Mando again after he’d escaped the first time and it didn’t look to be a very fair fight. She leapt onto its back, holding tight as she wails her fists and her staff on the tops and sides of its big head.

She’s bounced around on its back, but is somehow able to hold on for a good while before she goes down. Hard. The beast collapsed sideways, and she had to dive out of the way to avoid being crushed by its weight. Mando’s arm is still stuck in its mouth.

“Rey!” He shouts, waving his hand frantically at her. “Go! Get out of the way!” She turns just in time to see a second creature running at her and she dives forward to try and evade its charge, landing near Mando. He pushes her behind his body as the beast comes up on them acting as a proper shield, but at the last minute it keels over as well, a tingling blue spark spreading over its scaly body.

Rey holds onto his outstretched arm as she peers out from behind his back curiously. “What _are_ those things?”

And then _another one_ shows up, but it was much more subdued. Probably because of the Ugnaught riding on its back. Mando’s arm prevents her from moving out from behind him still as he slowly assessed the man.

“Thank you.”

“You are a bounty hunter.” The small man states in response.

“Yes.” He slowly lowers his arm, apparently assessing he was there to cause no harm and allowing Rey to properly crawl out from behind him.

She locks eyes with the man on top of the creature. He stares at her for a couple moments before speaking again. “I will help you… I have spoken.”

And with that he guided the large beast to turn and walk away.

Rey decided that she liked him, and she jumped to her feet with a smile, ready to follow. She does her best to be polite and help Mando up from the muddy ground also, but she doesn’t think she’s doing much more than offering the pleasantry as the large man takes her hand politely and grunts in his effort to stand up. She puts all her strength into it, her bodyweight too… so she likes to think she at least helped him a little bit.

Either way, she’s pleased he’s alright and trails beside him as they follow the Ugnaught back to his camp.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!! As you can probably tell, Grogu's gonna be introduced real soon! It was originally going to be in this chapter, but it got so long cuz I got so carried away that I had to split it in two lol! Let me know what you think!!  
> Also, there's so much potential and so much for me to explore with these two (three soon) I don't even know where to start! So, let me know if you have any ideas at all. I'd love to hear them, and even if I don't use them it might spark an idea of my own! Anyways thanks for reading!  
> Love y'all!

**Author's Note:**

> If you wanna see some related fanart, go check out my new Star Wars blog on [tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/sagedgeek) @sagedgeek


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